Turret press and case trimming

I am currently reloading with a single stage press and I am thinking about purchasing a Lee Classic turret press. Since I usually trim my cases after resizing I am wondering what procedure you folks use to perform this step and still take advantage of a progressive press. Any guidance would be appreciated.

Indeed you don't have to trim your brass with every reloading but only when the OAL exceeds the maximum and then you trim to the minimum. The difference between those two is usually 0.010 inches.

But you size a handful from the lot and THEN measure to determine if the lot needs trimming. The brass "stretches" with sizing as the die pushes the body in. If you trim then size your cases will end up too long once loaded.

While the Lee is OK, if you are going to upgrade to a turret you should look at the Lyman Turret Press. It is much more robust than the Lee and holds 6 dies allowing two calibers to be set up and left on the press, if you wish. If you update a press you really should update to a better press. Lee is entry level stuff. The Lyman press will last a lifetime, even with heavy use. Both take standard die sets.

If you're going to go with a turret press I would look around at what's available. The Lee Classic is an OK press for the price, but has too much play in the turret head. I had one and sold it after a short time, I would suggest looking at the Lyman, RCBS, or the Redding T7, also a really nice tool is the CH 444 "H" press, they all cost a few more bucks, but in the long run I'm sure you'll be happier with their quality and performance.

I have been loading on a classic turret for three years and it has been a great press for me. I don't know what problems the slop in the turret caused Freebore but mine has made very consistant ammo since day one. You will still need to check length after sizing but after case prep you can load with the auto indexing. I size all my rifle brass using the turret like a single stage press. After case prep is done I load in auto index mode. Here is a video to show you what I mean. It's not me but is very close to how I load rifle on the classic turret. I can load 250 an hour or a little more like this.
Rusty

Gadsden first off welcome to the form, you will find a lot of useful information here, the trouble with forms, you really don’t know the person you are talking to or the experience they have. My first question to you is. Are you loading pistol or rifle Ammo. Straight wall pistol. a lot of guys never size. Rifle on the other hand I mic all my cases after neck sizing. But the system I use is to have all my brass sized before hand as new ammo. Then when ready to load I run threw, prime, drop powder, and seat the bullet. This just works well for me. Others will have their own System.

get a good dial caliper. How often you trim is dependent on the cartridge you are trimming. for example, my .303 brit ammo for my #4 enfield requires trimming EVERY single time i reload them. This is mostly due to rifle design, the lack of rigid support for the bolt head due to the rear lugs on the rifle bolt allows the brass to stretch ALOT. this problem is only magnified by the overgenerous chamber dimensions of enfield rifles in .303 caliber. On the opposite end of the spectrum, I dont even remember the last time trimmed my .45 ACP brass, I think im probably 15 or 20 cycles in and have yet to have one mike over .892, they seem to just hang there.

Thank all of you for your input. I am going to load .223 30-06 and .44 mag. If I am happy with the results I will probably start to load 9x19 also. The video showing the Lee turret loading rifle bullets after sizing and case prep was especially helpful. Thanks again.

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